JLS students check out Solar Impulse airplane at Moffett Field

Daily News Staff Report

Posted:
04/16/2013 07:33:58 PM PDT

Updated:
04/16/2013 07:34:10 PM PDT

Click photo to enlarge

JLS Middle School students look at the Solar Impulse airplane on display at Moffett FieldÕs Hangar 2 in Mountain View on Tuesday, April 16, 2013. Children from the Palo Alto school asked Solar Impulse team members about their aircraft on Tuesday. The Swiss-designed airplane is the first solar-powered plane to fly day and night for 26 hours. On May 1, Swiss pilots Bertrand Piccard and André Borschberg will attempt a cross-country flight with the plane, flying from Mountain View to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City. They will later attempt a flight around the world in 2015. For more information visit www.solarimpulse.com.
(Kirstina Sangsahachart/ Daily News)

It's not often students get to see a solar-powered plane that can fly at night.

Children from JLS Middle School in Palo Alto went to Moffett Field's Hangar 2 in Mountain View on Tuesday to see Solar Impulse, a Swiss-designed aircraft with the wingspan of a Boeing 747 airliner, the weight of a commuter car, and the engine horsepower of a scooter.

The students asked questions about the plane and got to meet André Borschberg, CEO and co-founder of Solar Impulse.

On May 1, Borschberg and fellow pilot Bertrand Piccard will attempt a cross-country flight with the plane, flying from Mountain View to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City. They will later attempt a flight around the world in 2015.